Mathilde sighed heavily. She was irritated at Herman for the way he’d done it, and she could feel the resentment quiver inside her. He really was one to come up with silly notions. If he hadn’t been dead and buried, she would surely have given him a piece of her mind. What a nightmare he had left behind. She felt her eyes moistening and pulled out another handkerchief from the bedside drawer. She didn’t have many clean ones left. But right now, she was going to stay in bed and feel sorry for herself, for the chaos that she had unwillingly become a part of.
***
Bettina knew that Preben was in doubt. Solvik was a nice place to spend a day off, but to live here? That was something else. He had a red Ducati motorbike waiting at home in the garage. If he brought it here, they would hear the roar throughout the whole town. She didn’t know how well that would be received in this peaceful place and smiled thinking about it.
“A penny for your thoughts?” They’d left the garden and were strolling back to the marina where the car was parked. She gave him a scrutinizing look.
“I’m thinking about it all. About the surprise that became even bigger than expected. It’s so much to take into consideration.”
“I know what you mean,” she said. “In a way, I’m tempted to take over the guesthouse. My parents recently retired and moved to their cottage in Lillesand. They’ve sold the physiotherapy institute, and working there without them won’t be the same. I can continue working there as a physical therapist, but I don’t know…”
“Weren’t you asked to take over the institute?”
“Yes, but it wasn’t tempting. I might be ready to do something completely different.”
“But you have no clue how to run a guesthouse.”
She saw the truth in that statement and started laughing. “No, none at all. It would certainly be a lot to learn. Can you picture me serving the guests breakfast in the morning?”
He laughed. “Not really.”
They drove the half hour to Oslo. The drive was short enough for Preben to be able to commute to work in the capital, like many in Solvik did. There was a direct bus as well, but he’d surely prefer the bike. Moving was another matter.
Her thoughts went to her daughter. This wasn’t a decision for her to make alone. She didn’t know how Anneli would feel about living in such a big house. They needed to have a serious talk once she got home.
Bettina found her daughter in tears on the bed. She hurried over to her and sat down beside her.
“What’s going on, Anneli? Did you hurt yourself?”
She sat up and pointed at a letter on the bedside table.
Her daughter was about to start at a new school and had been waiting excitedly for a letter to see if she’d been admitted to the same school as her friends. There were many applicants this year, so the choice was mainly between two schools. Perhaps it was to do with that? She skimmed through the letter. Anneli was admitted to the school of her choice, but without her three best friends, whom she played handball with.
“I’m in the same class as Mona, Silje, and Erika, and I don’t like any of them,” she cried. “They don’t care about school at all.”
Bettina stroked her cheek and dried her tears. “That’s a shame. I know how much it meant to you to be in the same school as your best friends.” She held her in her arms for a long time before getting up.
“I’m making some dinner, and then we can talk about it. We have to decide what to do about Uncle’s will.”
Bettina’s mother, Nita, was from Mexico, so Mexican food had been an integral part throughout her upbringing. It was the kind of food they all liked and was often served for dinner. While frying meat for the tostadas, she thought about how sad her daughter was. Handball was important to her. She’d been on the same team as her friends for several years. They could still practice and play on the old team, but they’d lose the daily contact if they didn’t attend the same school. This often happened when changing from one school to the other. You had to expect that there would be many new things. They’d talked about this being a possible outcome, but Anneli wasn’t prepared when it happened. She could relate to her daughter’s disappointment and wished there was something she could do to help. It hurt to see her like this.
Bettina lay awake for a long time that night. Her thoughts ran in all possible directions. She’d called her parents and talked it over with them, hoping to see things more clearly, but was still confused. She was close to them, and they had always been able to discuss issues. Anneli was only three years old when her father died in a work accident. Bettina had been very young, and with a small kid to raise alone. Her parents had helped out so that she’d been able to finish her education. She wouldn’t have made it without them. They had good memories from their visits to Solvik but had been adamant that the decision was Bettina’s. So she was back to where she’d started. She’d make another trip to Solvik with Anneli tomorrow, to see how she liked it.
***
“The house is huge,” Anneli said, gazing at the mansion through her sunglasses. They were used to an apartment, so any house would be large in comparison. But this was not a regular house.
“It has a total of eight bedrooms in different sizes, in addition to Aunt Mathilde’s apartment. Six of them are going to be guest rooms. Come, let’s have a look inside.”
She couldn’t help but feel excited when opening the door. This could be hers if she wanted it and was ready to try something new. If she could stand her aunt’s company on a daily basis, that was.
They walked around and had a look at all the rooms, and finally sat on the soft sofa.
“What do you think?”
“It’s lovely. But I don’t know if I’d like to live here. It would be weird to have strangers in the house all the time.” Anneli braided her dark brown ponytail.
“I feel the same.” Bettina sighed. “I’ll feel guilty if I don’t take over. Aunt Mathilde can’t manage it on her own. The house will remain unfinished and unused. But I can’t let this run our lives, either.”
“Grandpa said there’s no accommodation in Solvik,” Anneli said. “But he also told me they’ve started building a big hotel on the cape over by the marina.”
“I heard about that,” Bettina said and gave her daughter a concerned look. “We don’t know what impact it will have on the guesthouse, but it would be a strong competitor. Father said they’re building a conference hotel with a spa. It’s supposed to be completed next spring.”
“Maybe fewer will choose to stay here then.”
“We’d have to make it unique. And give the guests something different than the hotel can offer.”
“Do you know how to do that, Mom?”
“Not at all. If we decide to go for this, it would be something completely new for both of us. You’d have to start school here. Make new friends. Presumably, they have a handball team here as well. How do you feel about that?”
“I don’t know. I’d have to make new friends anyway now that I won’t see my old ones any more. But what about Preben? He can’t race around on his red monster out here, can he?”
She smiled. Her fiancé and Anneli got along well, and deep down she was impressed by the bike. She’d even been allowed to ride on the back one time. But Anneli was not too fond of speed, and Bettina herself wasn’t crazy about it either.
“No, both he and the bike suit the highway better. But it’s worth a try. See how it goes. Aunt Mathilde is against him moving in here before we’re married anyway. She’s awfully conservative. He should keep his apartment in Oslo and visit us on the weekends. It’ll be okay for a while,” she said.
She knew it wouldn’t be as easy as she made it out to be. They couldn’t just move here and hope for the best. What if Preben didn’t like it here? Then she’d already have left everything behind and gotten rid of her apartment. Should she risk her relationship for this project? There was no guarantee they’d like it here. How easy would it be to move back to Oslo, if need be? She had so man
y questions and no answers.
Anneli got up. “Should we say hi to the grouch before we leave?”
She smiled and wondered how her daughter would handle Mathilde. They went up to the apartment and found the grouch sitting in bed. Anneli went over and politely greeted her.
“I haven’t seen you in years. You’re almost grown up.” Mathilde squinted so hard that her nose wrinkled, making her glasses slide.
“I’m thirteen.”
“I see. And you are planning to attend the school in Solvik?” Mathilde apparently took it for granted that they would move here.
Bettina stepped in. “There’s a lot to consider before we can decide. What plans do you have for the six guest rooms?” She figured it was best to know her aunt’s position, and how much freedom she’d have if they moved there.
“What do you mean? They’ll be white, of course, like the rest of the house.” She pushed her glasses back up, but squinted, so they slid down again. She looked penetratingly at her niece.
Bettina wasn’t to be scared. “What about the furnishings in the rooms? Beds, wardrobes, curtains, and stuff like that.”
“I haven’t picked it out yet. We didn’t get that far. But I’ll take care of it myself. I only need you to run the place.”
She felt an increasing sense of unrest. Accomplishing anything with this person would be difficult. She was simply not sure if she was willing to put up with it. But if she was to make a life for herself here in Solvik, she had to have a say, too. She needed a home she’d love to live in. Not a place where her aunt reigned, no matter if she owned half of it or not. She’d better be clear on this right away.
“Auntie, I own as much of the house as you do now. If we are to move here, I have the same right as you to make decisions. You’ll have to let me decide over the six guest bedrooms, and our bedrooms. The rooms will be painted in the colors I pick and furnished by me. You’ve decorated the rest of the house, so it’s only fair I get to do the remaining parts.”
Mathilde looked like she couldn’t believe her ears, and had gotten very pale. “Talk about boundless impudence. This is my house, my home. I’m the one to decide. I’m not dead yet. The will doesn’t grant you the right to take over and rule as you wish. I can leave my part of the property to Lauritz.” She ran out of breath. “Yes, indeed I can.”
“Fine. In that case, I wish you good luck with the guesthouse.”
A few minutes later they’d changed into bikinis, and were running across the road into the water. They both enjoyed swimming, and Bettina liked beginning early in the spring and to keep going until late in the fall, even if the water got pretty cold. Now in the summer, at seventy-two degrees, it was almost too warm for her.
“Oh, lovely,” Anneli cried. “Imagine being able to swim from your own house.”
Her daughter’s enthusiasm made her elated, and she swam out to reach her. “It could be ours if we want it.”
“You were very firm, Mom. But so was Mathilde.”
“I had to be, Anneli. It’s always best to be explicit about what you’ll accept and what you can’t go along with.”
They swam further out.
“So, what do we do now?”
“I’m going to call Father. Perhaps he can talk to her tonight, and we’ll take it from there. First of all, we have to think about what we want. Let’s do some sightseeing in town, so I can show you the school and everything else I remember.”
They dried off with the towels Bettina had brought from home. Then they drove along the boardwalk, watching the people who were swimming and sunbathing. It was the same beach as the one in front of her aunt’s house, but there were fewer people this far down. The marina started at the end of the beach, and many of the boats were out. The ones that were left were bobbing peacefully in the soft waves.
The bakery with the ice cream was closed. “We’ll have to come back when it’s open. You’ll love the ice cream they sell there,” she said, pointing.
They drove through the streets of the town center with the white wooden houses and shops. There were few chain stores, but plenty of unique ones.
“It’s charming here,” Anneli said. “Is that the school?”
They parked the car and went to have a look. There was a soccer field next to the school and below it the wood that stretched all the way down to the sea. There were open fields with a playground and picnic tables.
“Down there is Aunt Mathilde’s house,” Anneli said.
“And over by the wood is a recreational area with beach bays and plenty of space for ball games in the summer. It’s very popular. We can pass by on our way home. But do you fancy something to eat first?”
“Yes, I’m hungry.”
“In that case, we can choose between Café Solside and a new Italian restaurant I saw on the corner somewhere. What are you in the mood for?”
“Lasagna, maybe.”
They found Lombardi’s and parked on a side street. Since it was Sunday and all the stores were closed, it was easy to find parking. Cape daisies in light purple and pink were blooming in the pots outside the restaurant.
They entered a cozy room with small tables and brick walls. The red and white checkered tablecloths and curtains matched the rustic atmosphere perfectly. A smiling man approached them.
“Hello there. Have you been swimming in this nice weather?” The man had a strong accent and was most likely Italian. His hair was just as dark as Bettina’s, but he had dark brown eyes.
“Yes, the water was wonderful.” She ran her hand through her hair.
“I’m Ricco,” he said. “The restaurant is all new. In fact, we haven’t even opened. The kitchen is not fully in place, but no worries. I can make anything your heart desires from my apartment on the second floor.” He gave her a dazzling white smile, and she smiled back. What a charismatic guy.
“But in that case, we can come back another time.”
“No problem. What would you like to eat?”
She looked over at Anneli, who shrugged and sat down at a table by the window.
“My daughter would like lasagna, but I’m not sure what I want.”
“Let me surprise you,” Ricco said with a sly smile, and left.
“He’s definitely not Norwegian,” she said to Anneli, who looked lost in her thoughts. “What’s on your mind?”
“I’m wondering if they have a handball team in this town.”
Bettina had played handball herself when she was young and knew how much the sport meant to her daughter. “I can check tomorrow if you want.”
Shortly after, Ricco came with the food, humming, and placed a plate of tortellini in front of her, and lasagna for Anneli. Then he left again and came back a moment later with a pitcher of water with ice and mint leaves. And a cheese grater that he used to grate parmesan artistically. The food was some of the best she’d ever eaten. Weird how something so simple could be so tasty.
When they finally left, it was already afternoon. Ricco waved goodbye, and they promised to come back once the restaurant was officially open. Now it was time to head home and call her parents.
***
Preben was sitting on the sofa with a beer. He’d been on a road trip into the Swedish woods with the biker club. The Swedes had some excellent roads with few cars. He’d pushed the Ducati up to max speed several times. Good thing the Swedish police hadn’t been around, otherwise it could have gone wrong. In that case, he would have been forced to ride home with one of the others, and that would have been more embarrassing than he could imagine.
He took a gulp from the bottle and felt the cold beer quench his thirst. How was Bettina doing? He wished she shared his passion for motorbikes. He had tried, several times, but she wasn’t overly enthusiastic. So he’d given up. His ex-wife had been just as interested in bikes and adrenaline as him. She had even had her own bike. Those were the days…
Bettina and her daughter were spending the day in Solvik. He didn’t know how he felt about it. She seemed interes
ted in moving to the countryside, although she was hesitant. He was terrified, thinking of how quiet it was out there. How would it be to wake up to birdsong, instead of the noise of traffic? He couldn’t picture it. He should be a part of the decision-making process. After all, this wasn’t her decision alone. Soon they would be married, and they were planning a future together. He could visit them on the weekends in the beginning and see how he liked it. But then it would be too late for her to change her mind. By then she would already have invested time and money into renovating the rest of the house. It wouldn’t be easy to back out, even if she wanted to. What a predicament her uncle had put her in.
***
Bettina had been pondering for some time before she called her father. She was no closer to a solution and needed advice. Her father knew her aunt the best, since she had married his brother.
Time for New Beginnings Page 2